FALLS CHURCH, VA, US U.S. Marine Corps SGT, 1ST BN,11TH MAR, (RCT-2, I MEF FWD), 1ST MAR DIV, CAMP PENDLETON, CA 03/23/2003, HELMAND PROVINCE, AFGHANISTAN
Twenty-six year old, Sergeant Ronald A. Rodriguez was part of the 1st Battalion, 11th Marines, (RCT-2, 1 MEF FWD), 1st Marine Division at Camp Pendleton, California. Sergeant Rodriguez was killed August 23, 2010 by a roadside bomb while in combat in Helmand province, Afghanistan. He had just arrived in Afghanistan earlier that summer.
Ronald Rodriguez was a graduate of J.E.B. Stuart High School in the Falls Church , Virginia area and enlisted in the Marine Corps when he was 18. He had been deployed to Iraq in 2003 and returned in 2004. He was on his third deployment. Ronald was awarded the Purple Heart, Navy-Marine Corps Ribbon, Navy Presidential Unit Citation, Navy Unit Commendation, Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal , Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, and Sea Service Deployment Ribbon .
He was a cannoneer in the field artillery. As a teenager, he was an athlete and was very active in all the sports including soccer and basketball. He had an assignment at Quantico Marine Base, and lived in Stafford County,Virginia, where a former neighbor recalled him as quiet young man with a deep love for his family. He enjoyed being with his parents and his three brothers. Ronald had a son and a stepson who also enjoyed playing soccer.